What is it?
Hong Kong's music scene isn't exactly world famous, but Clockenflap has been doing a solid job of putting it on the map for the past eight years and 2015 is no different. With the biggest artists to date and record breaking sales it's definitely growing on the international calendar as one to watch. It takes place between Friday the 27th and Sunday the 29th of November in the West Kowloon Cultural District.

Clockenflap 2015

Why it's great?
Other than the fact that you've got that movie scene skyline as a backdrop you mean? Okay then. Well, first of all shows in Hong Kong are polite, like organised circle pit polite. Second, it's not too big yet. Granted the site of Worthy Farm is as big as all of Hong Kong it was never going to be quite that big, but if Hong Kongers are good at anything then it's utilising space and not an inch is wasted here with art installations, stages and plenty more packed in. Third, there's no camping and as if that wasn't enough there's no mud either! Hell, it's probably at least a balmy 24 degrees outside. Did we mention you couldn't camp even if you really, really were looking forward to spending three days in piss wet through stinky tent with a snorer?

What's new this year?
Well being that this is 2015 and physical money is, like, so 2014 you can now arm yourself with an RFiD chipped wristband. What's that you ask? Well, imagine you're a cat and you had a chip in your neck that allowed you to walk near a cat flap and it would automatically open for you and give you catnip, it's a bit like that. With just the scan of your wrist you have easy access to and from the festival site with no queues, you can also use it to buy everything from beer to merchandise. Naturally there's an app with all things Clockenflap on it where you can create a customised itinerary; ain't no fun like organised fun.

The Music:
There's some fantastic artists from all over the world playing this year, we're most excited about Sunday night headliners New Order who, on the back of their latest album, are playing their only Asian show this year here. In a similar boat is hip-hop heavyweight A$AP Rocky who's a huge score for the festival. There's Hong Kong favourites HOCC and Leah Dou (daughter of Faye Wong and Dou Wei) who's making her local debut at the festival as well as Japanese noise rockers Bo Ningen. There's UK Dj's from DJ Yoda to Mr Scruff, Californian metalcore outfit Obey The Brave, reggae from The Skatalites and classic pop-covers from Nouvelle Vague amongst many others. Spoken word artist Saul Williams is also making an appearance, which just goes to show the incredible variety of artists on choice here from all over the Earth.

The Art:
This year's theme is "Cosmic & Communal" which sounds lovely and twee while remaining savvy enough for the city. The art roster includes documentaries, silent cinema, and Hong Kong's now beloved Secret Walls which will serve up live illustration along with dance battles, which all sounds very Step Up. There's game shows from Miss Behave, circus theatre - whatever that is - from Tom Flanagan, drag queens and even The Healing Fields in case you were starting to forget where you are.

The Local Acts:
There's plenty of international names to draw the versatile residents of Hong Kong in, but it'd be a shame not to give the local artists a chance. If Cantopop is your thing then Denise Ho is the big star of the weekend, The Chung Brother's are there for your genre-bending jazz moods and will definitely be an interesting act to watch. If noisy post-rock is your thing then up and comers ANWIYCTI and Prune Deer are ones to keep your eye on - we'll definitely be checking them out. Don't forget the whole host of local DJ's that will be spinning beats all weekend.

So there you have it - the bite-sized guide to this year's Clockenflap festival. Go forth, listen, swipe, drink and enjoy a festival that's sure to be unlike any other.

Visit the official website for ticket information.